Page 11 of Wickedly Yours

My handsome stranger stood up and offered me a hand up. “It’s late,” he said. “We should get you home.”

“Right.” Taking his hand, I let him pull me up from the grass, briefly brushing off my backside as he kept our hands intertwined. We headed back downtown, but before we got back to the bar, I tugged on his hand, pulling us to a stop.

“This is me,” I murmured, looking at the side door to my upstairs apartment and then back down at our hands.

“You live up there?” He asked.

I nodded. “Above the bakery. I wanted some privacy. It’s weird to live with your sibling when you’re in your mid-twenties.” That was the understatement of the century. Even if I loved Willow, sometimes it was exhausting fighting over who would take the trash out or do the dishes, or to stop hogging the laundry machine.

He chuckled. “I can see that.”

Clearing my throat, I looked back at him. “Do you want to come up?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. We can have another drink, maybe.” I had a bottle of wine in the fridge. And I didn’t want to say goodbye. Not yet.

“Okay,” he agreed, and I started up the stairs, pausing at the top step.What was I doing?

Leading this man up to my apartment? Bringing him inside, so that… what? I hesitated as I unlocked the door, and when I looked up at him, there was a frown on my face.

Zain squeezed my hand, as if he sensed the conflict inside of me. “I can go.”

That was all it took. All my apprehension melted away. A reminder that this feltsoright. Our future might have been hazy, but there was no grief in it.

“No.” I shook my head, my hand wrapping around his wrist. “Come in. Please. I want you to.”

He chuckled, following me into the apartment. “Okay.”

I led him into the living room, slowly sinking down onto the couch. Tucking my knees underneath me, I leaned my head against the fabric. I was still wearing his jacket. Part of me knew I should probably have given it back to him sooner, but it was cozy, and I hated relinquishing it.

Zain followed me, somehow looking completely out of place in my tiny apartment.

Selene brushed up against his leg, and Zain practically jumped. “What is that?”

I giggled. “That’s my cat.” I picked her up, holding her in my arms as she started to purr. “She’s friendly, I promise.”

Zain quirked an eyebrow. “And she just lives here?”

“Have you never seen a cat before?” I frowned. Where exactly had this man been living that he’d never encountered one?

Leaning down, he brushed a hand over her white fur. “Not like this one.”

“She’s been with me since I was little,” I said. “Every witch gets their familiar when their powers manifest.”

My lips curled into a smile as he scratched under Selene’s chin, and a loud purring sound emitted from her throat. “She likes you.”

She wasn’t the only one. I did, too.

“Huh.” He kept making the motion, even as Selene emitted a few happy chirps and purred away.

Finally, he joined me on the couch, sitting on the opposite side, so the only part of our bodies that touched were our knees.

“I had fun tonight,” I said, unable to wipe the smile off of my face as I bumped his knee with mine. “Thank you. It’s been a while since I enjoyed myself so much.” Maybe I needed to pick up hot, handsome strangers in bars more often.

The thought felt slimy. Was it because Zain was currently on my couch? Either way, I couldn’t imagine this night with anyone else but him. Something about him just felt right.

“Me too,” he agreed. “It was the best night I’ve had in a long time.”

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